Dreams in the Night
by displacement
Summary: Eight years after leaving the Labyrinth, Sarah finds herself returning back. Her memories are gone, and Jareth searches for a way to bring them back to her. Chapter 4 retooled
1. Dreams in the Night

* * *

This is my first fanfiction, so I hope that you enjoy it. I posted this before, but realized I had left some errors in it. Unforgivable! So here is the revision, hopefully error free. Enjoy!

* * *

Dreams in the Night

by displacement

* * *

Jim Henson owns Jareth, Sarah, and Toby. But I own the rest. Yay!

* * *

Sarah sighed, and turned over on her back. With one arm thrown over her head, legs sprawled carelessly she might have looked the very picture of lazy contentedness, if it wasn't for the deep frown that creased her lovely face. She glanced over to the lump of flesh sleeping beside her. He snorted once, then settled into a deeper sleep, unaware of her contemptuous gaze.

"Weighed in the balance, and found wanting," she mumbled to herself. With a sigh she rolled over and sat up. For a moment she sat perched on the edge of the unfamiliar bed, face buried in her hands and wondered how this had happened to her. Again. She knew she wasn't going to get any sleep much sleep that night, and didn't feel like waking up next to this guy—George? John? What was his name again?

She slowly sat up, not wanting to wake her erstwhile bed companion, and started the search for her panties and the rest of her clothing. The night was still somewhat blurred, but she remembered going out to the club by herself out of sheer boredom. Usually she abhorred such places, but this night she had felt an extreme desire, almost an obsession, to lose herself in cheap booze and pounding music.

When these urges came over her, she usually scorned the many people who approached her to dance, or to join them in a drink, preferring to remain by herself. Every once in a while, however, she would find herself drawn to one man in the room that would catch her attention. Invariably these men were tall and thin with light eyes and blond hair, preferably long. She wasn't quite sure why this combination of physical traits triggered something in the lusty center of her brain, but they always did. She wouldn't wait, or take a chance on them coming to her. She boldly sought them out and seduced them before they even knew what was happening. Yet every time she was left with a cold, empty feeling, as if what she was searching for was missing. But she had no idea what it was she was looking for, she was hardly aware that there _was_ something specific she searched for. No matter how many times she would find herself slinking out the front door of some random guy's house at 4:00AM, vowing never to let it happen again, she couldn't help but break that promise to herself.

Sarah quietly let herself into her own apartment, mindful of the annoyingly noise sensitive woman who lived below her. She showered, wanting to cleanse herself of the sweat and smoke which clung to her as much as to wash away the memories of the man she had gone home with. Throwing a small t-shirt over her panties she crawled into bed.

_Thank god it's still the weekend_, she thought. She had all day Sunday to recover from her nocturnal adventures before school on Monday. Thinking about her little class brought a much needed smile to Sarah's lips, and she finally felt peaceful enough to drift away into sleep.

* * *

She was dreaming of something bizarre and inane, playing miniature golf with her brother Toby. People kept wanting to play through, and would interrupt them in the middle of a hole—except no one was playing with golf clubs, they all had pool cues and they would get on their bellies to shoot at the golf balls. She had just looked over to Toby to laugh with him about it, when suddenly a flash of golden hair in her periphery vision distracted her, and the dream changed. She was now alone, lying on a huge bed with dark satin sheets. The bed seemed to stretch on forever, she could hardly see beyond it, it was so expansive, but somehow she knew she was in a castle. She leaned her head back into the pillow and closed her eyes while feeling the texture of the cloth beneath her. It was the softest thing she had ever felt, and she hummed deep in her throat at the delight of it.

"Does something please you?" a voice breathed in her ear.

She opened her eyes and found herself looking at the most beautiful man she had ever laid eyes on. He was tall and slender with long blond hair which fell about his shoulders, but was wild and spiky at the top. But his eyes were the most amazing part of his beauty. Sarah realized _this_ was what she had been searching for all this time. His eyebrows jutted sharply up at the corners of his eyes, and there was a dark design patterned there. She could tell it wasn't makeup, but she didn't know what it was. It looked amazingly exotic though, and somehow still entirely normal on his face. The most striking thing about him was the fact that one eye was a light hazel, while the other was a striking blue.

She merely stared at him, taking in his features, her mouth hanging slightly open, a small glimmer of her teeth showing. He returned her gaze with a penetrating one of his own, which faded slowly into a smirk.

"Hello again, Sarah." As he spoke, she was haunted by the melody of his voice, his accent, the way he practically purred the words at her.

"Who—who are you?" she stuttered, ashamed at how her voice shook. She was never this disconcerted when it came to men. But then again, she mused, she had never met any man that she felt remotely anything for. But this face, this man, made her heart swell in her chest and her throat seize with emotion.

"I know you don't remember me. How many times have we had this conversation? I knew you once, a long time ago." At her wide eyed, confused stare he sighed.

"Why don't I remember you?"

"It's not allowed."

"What?"

"Here, maybe this will help. Technically its against the rules, but I don't think you'll tell on me, will you?" He passed his hand lightly over the crown of her head, his long, gloved fingers lingering to stroke her cheek gently. She gasped in surprise and abruptly stiffened in shock as memory came flooding back to her. In a flash she remembered everything.

Wishing Toby away. Running the labyrinth to get him back. Her regret at rejecting Jareth's final offer. Saying the words that sent Toby and herself back home. She remembered calling for her friends that first night, the wild party that had ensued, that her parents magically did not hear. She remembered the flash of white outside her window, and wondered at the snowy barn owl perched on the tree, looking in. She had stared at it until it had flown away, for some reason leaving her with an unsettled feeling, an island of uneasiness amidst the rambunctiousness of the goblins and other creatures who had come to her.

After that party she had never seen any of her friends again. She had slept that night, then woken, completely convinced it had all been a dream. Granted, the most vivid, lifelike dream she had ever experienced, but a dream nonetheless. A dream she had forgotten immediately upon waking.

However, she had changed greatly after that. She no longer obsessed over fairy tales and fantasy stories. Somehow they didn't seem to live up to the real thing any longer, although she didn't know why that was (or how she knew what the "real thing" was). She got along much better with her parents, she felt a great love for Toby that she had never felt before. She was like an entirely new person. Her parents noted the change, but didn't comment on it.

As all this knowledge of the past flooded Sarah, seeming to drop into her brain from nowhere, she realized something else. It had been years until she had seen Jareth, her Goblin King, once again. He had waited five years before coming to her, in a dream just like this.

"Why did you take so long to come back to me?" she asked.

He sighed. "You always ask that."

"I know," she said with a wry grin.

"Then you tell _me_ why."

She thought for a moment, trying to make sense of her new memories, seeking the knowledge she needed. "Ahh," she said finally, "it was not allowed."

"Yes Sarah. Remember when you saw me out the window, the night you defeated me? I allowed you one last chance to see your friends before I was forced to take away your memories of your time in my world away. It was in the rules, you know."

_/It's in the rules. And I must warn you that one of us always lies and one of us always tells the truth. That's a rule too. He always lies./_

_/I do not! I tell the truth./_

_/Ohh, what a lie./_

"Yes, I know all about the rules," she said, with a slight bitterness to her tone.

"Of course." He smiled at her briefly. "I waited so long because...well, I was _never_ supposed to see you again. But I studied our laws concerning mortals and their admittance to the underground. I realized that a loophole existed: as long as I came to you only in your dreams there was nothing anyone could do about it. Of course, if they knew I returned your memories to you while I was here, they wouldn't be to happy. But, there you have it."

"Jareth, I've missed you. Tonight I—"

"Yes, I know." At her ashamed frown, and the tears that gathered in her eyes, he lifted her chin. Slowly he stroked her cheek. She sighed and leaned into his hand, unable to look away from his strangely beautiful eyes. "Sarah," he whispered. He drew off one black glove, and brushed his thumb over her lips. Without thinking, she took that digit between her teeth, gently biting him.

"So, that's the way it is to be tonight?" he asked in a low voice. She grinned in response and ran her lips over his thumb, smoothing away any sting her bite might have caused. "Keep it up Sarah, I won't be held accountable for my actions." She merely leaned in and bit him on the neck, at the sensitive spot just beneath his ear, slightly harder this time.

He let out a sound somewhere between a groan and a growl. Before she knew what was happening he had turned her on her back, was lying halfway on top of her, and devouring her mouth. She moaned, a low, guttural sound that tore from her center. The feeling of his tongue brushing against hers was incredibly erotic, and she didn't think she'd ever felt anything so good. He kissed her with just the right amount of pressure, insistent and demanding that she give herself to him, but not too rough as to be painful.

Her arms crept around his side to his back and she crushed herself to him, reveling in the feeling of his hairless chest pressing into her breasts. She twined her legs with his, in an effort to press as much of her skin to him as possible. At length he separated from her, pushing himself up on his hands to look down at her. The angle caused his hips to press against hers even more intimately, and she shuddered in pleasure from the feeling.

"Sarah," he groaned. There was a pained look on his face she realized, slowly coming out of her lust filled daze. She ceased the slow grinding her hips had been making against his, and tried to concentrate on him.

"Jareth," she cried eventually, "What is it?" A sinking feeling filled her. He looked at her for a long moment, crouched over her, his gaze flicking over her face, coming to rest finally at her eyes. The cold feeling inside her was turning to dread.

"Darling, I can't do this anymore."

She cried out, but he continued as if he hadn't heard. "When you left me all those years ago I was destroyed, but I understood. Few people have ever solved the labyrinth. Those that have invariably refused whatever it was I offered them at the end. Only once have I ever offered myself in place of a child. I was devastated when you refused me, but I understood."

She took a breath to say something, but he silenced her with a finger to her lips. "What hurt me the most was knowing that you would forget all about me, that I would be forced to erase your memories of this place, or cause you to think it had all been a dream. I couldn't live knowing that I loved you while you had not the faintest idea of who or what I was. Even our time together in the labyrinth as adversaries was precious to me, and I wanted it to be just as precious to you. So I stayed away, reading every book I could get my hands on about interaction between our two worlds. When I discovered I could come to you in your dreams I was elated. Even if you didn't remember me from day to day, I could have you at night."

At this he trailed off, looking down at her with pained eyes. He collapsed over her, carefully rolling to the side onto his back so as not to crush her. "But my dear Sarah," and he flung one arm pathetically over his eyes, as if to shut out reality. "Now this is not enough. I have spent every night for the past three years waiting to hold you, talk to you, make love to you. I spend every day cursing the moment I must spend apart from you. My kingdom is beginning to suffer." He turned his head to look at her. "Sarah, even now you torture me."

She couldn't hold back any longer. "Jareth," she said desperately, "Don't you think I feel the same way? I spend every day searching for something, something I cannot define. I long for you during the day without even knowing its you I need!"

"I know Sarah, and that's another reason why—"

"Jareth, what are you saying?"

"I can't do this anymore." With that stark announcement he closed his eyes, as if to shield himself from either his pain or hers. Sarah, for her part, curled herself into a ball, her back to him. A cold lump of fear had settled on her chest and she was finding it difficult to breath. She choked as she tried to speak, and had to swallow the gigantic lump that had formed in her throat.

"What. Exactly. Do. You. Mean. By. That." She was deadly serious, but her voice cracked on the last word, and she finally turned to look at him. He was staring at the ceiling, lost in thought. "Jareth!" The sharp cry brought him back to attention.

"Hmmm?" He finally seemed to take in her horrified expression, and looked at her incredulously. Suddenly realization hit him and he started laughing. Laughing! Her expression changed instantly from horror to cold fury.

"How DARE you laugh at me! You insolent bastard! Fuck you Jareth. Fine, leave. See if I care. I won't remember this in the morning anyways, right?" With her last words a stone mask settled over his features. She knew she was no longer looking at her lover of the past three years, but the man she had met as a child. She was looking at the Goblin King. With that thought, one more horrible occurred to her.

"This is my punishment, isn't it. For beating you. For beating your stupid labyrinth. You come to me, lull me into a false sense of security, make me fall in love with you, and then dump me on my ass."

"Well," he said coldly, "Is that any different from what you did to me?"

She climbed to her knees. "You BASTARD!" she screamed. "How can you do this after three years? Three YEARS!" She wasn't sure if she wanted to run away, or hit him as hard as she could. She must have made some sudden movement in her indecision, because suddenly he grabbed her by the wrists and pulled her down under him. He straddled her to hold her down as she struggled to break loose.

"Sarah," he said in a deadly quiet voice. She had never heard him use quite that tone before, and she shivered with the hidden danger she sensed in it. She began to struggle again, harder this time, and began to sob over and over, "How could you do this? How could you do it?"

"Sarah," he repeated, slightly louder. "Sarah! SARAH! DO WHAT? The only thing I'm going to do is figure out a way for you to be with me forever!"

"What?!" she cried. After a pause she began to struggle again. "How could you let me think you were going to leave me? How could you let me think that!" But she was struggling much less whole heartedly.

He sighed loudly and rolled his eyes, although he couldn't suppress the laughter that bubbled out of him. "You are the damnedest woman I've ever met. How ever am I going to be able to put up with you for the rest of my life?"

"Hey!" she yelled smiling, in mock outrage. To still her erratic movements he laid himself fully over her body. Her wild struggling turned into sensual writhing as she was finally placated. He chuckled again to himself as he bit lightly on her shoulder, hearing her searing moan.

"Now Sarah," he whispered hotly in her ear. "Do you really think I could give _this_ up?" She moaned again in response. "I can see eternity will never be boring with you around, my dear." She giggled and he got down to the business of making love to her.

* * *

Sarah woke extremely late Sunday morning. She jerked awake, panicked for a moment, not sure about where she was. There was something about her dreams last night, something she desperately wanted to remember. She heard a voice whispering in her ear, "I will find a way," but before long that too was gone.

Sighing loudly she rolled out of bed, only to stop short, her hands pressed to her head.

"God," she groaned, "What the hell did I drink last night?" She stumbled into the kitchen to make some coffee. The thought of eating anything right now made her stomach churn. She knew that she had showered the night before, but she thought another one might help her wake up and relieve her of some of her hangover.

She put the coffee on to brew and went to the bathroom. She laughed at the trail of clothing from the front door to the bathroom, and turned the water to scalding hot. She winced as she stepped under the spray, but as she shampooed her long brown hair she sighed at how nice it felt on her throbbing headache.

Throbbing. That reminded her of something she dreamed last night. Her eyes widened in shock as she recalled the feeling of throbbing flesh under her hand. She struggled to remember more, but to no avail.

"Damn," she murmured to herself, "It seems like it was a good one, too."

She spent the rest of the afternoon grading test papers for her class of second graders. She adored all her students, and they felt the same way about her. She had a good touch with young children, and she felt like teaching was the best part of her life. Her family was important to her, she had few friends, but those she had were extremely close. She didn't have a boyfriend, feeling mostly repugnance for the men who approached her. But everything paled in comparison with the feeling she got from teaching new things to young children. She had worked hard to get through school quickly, immersing herself in study, taking summer classes, choosing an accelerated grad school program. This was her first year with a class of her own, and she loved it. Each of her twenty-five students was special, and she loved finding ways to draw some special talent out of each of them.

After a late dinner, Sarah checked through one more time to make sure her work was done before eagerly going to bed. Even though she had slept very late, she had been looking forward to bed all day. She smiled as she drifted off, the ghost of a name on her lips.

"Jareth..."

* * *

"Ms. Williams, can I go to the bathroom?"

Sarah sighed to herself, and tried not to let her exasperation show. "Yes Tommy, you can go to the bathroom. Does anyone else have to go?" At their wide eyed stares and heads shaking no, Sarah smiled. "Okay then, who wants to solve the next problem on the board?"

The day had been creeping by slowly, Sarah was trying to teach the students how to do long division, and it had been a disaster. Math had never been her strong point, so she was finding it particularly difficult to help others learn how it worked. She wrote a somewhat simpler problem on the board, and asked if anyone would like to try it instead. When no one raised their hands, she thought maybe she was putting to much pressure to perform in front of everyone. She set them the task of doing it on their own before trying at the board, and from the relieved looks she got, she thought maybe she was on the right track.

She couldn't wait until the afternoon, when they would be going over the book reports she had set for them to do. She had been looking forward to seeing which books had been chosen. Her students had been working on this little project for a while, and she was very interested to see how they had done with it. It was the first such project she had given them, and she was using it as something of a test for their abilities to do work on their own.

"Okay, now who can show us how they got their answer?" At the tentative raising of five or six hands, she finally called on Brian, the shyest boy in the class who hardly ever volunteered for anything. Sarah grinned. Things were looking up.

The bell rang signaling the end of school for the day, and as the students noisily put their books away in their desks and moved to the back of the room to collect their coats, Sarah asked one of her students to stay behind for a moment. She rolled her eyes at the singsongy , "Oooohhh," that followed, the universal sound of 'you're in trouble!'

"That's enough," she admonished, but with a smile. She couldn't even remember how many times she'd made that sound when she was in grade school.

"Emily, I wanted to talk to you about your book report."

"Okaay."

"It's nothing bad," Sarah said quickly.

"Oh," replied the girl, and grinned in relief.

"Actually, I thought it was very good. The book you wrote about," Sarah looked down at the papers in her hand, "_The Labyrinth,_ sounds very nice. I was wondering if maybe you might want to talk to the class about it. You know, give an oral report of the book you chose."

At the look of horror that crossed her face Sarah quickly added, "Only if you want to! If not, then maybe we could read this book during story time. Would you like that?"

"Yeah! I can bring the book in for you tomorrow if you want!"

Sarah laughed at her little student's enthusiasm. "That sounds fantastic. All right then, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye Ms. Williams!"

"Goodbye Emily."

* * *

The next morning Sarah woke feeling disoriented for a moment. The feeling quickly passed, and for some reason the book she was to be reading today to the class came to her mind.

"The Labyrinth," she whispered out loud, and shivered. She didn't know why this was affecting her so badly, all she knew about it was the summary of an eight year old girl. Yet she was intrigued by the whole thing, and all she knew what that she couldn't wait to get her hands on that book.

She quickly showered and drank a cup of coffee and headed off to school.

"Good morning class, good morning."

"Good mor-ning Ms. Williams." Sarah always cringed at the way her class said good morning. They sounded so mindless, so not-there. They always reminded her of some kind of zombies, going through the routine, and never paying attention to their surroundings. She usually let it slide, but today she wouldn't.

"Come on, you can do better than that." Irritation colored her voice. The class sat up a little straighter, and some of the students looked at each other nervously. Their teacher had never quite used that tone of voice with them before. Usually she was very sweet, and the whole class loved her. But something was different today.

"Good morning Ms. Williams."

"Alright, lets get down to work. I have a list of problems here that I want you to solve. I'll write them on the blackboard and you'll have twenty minutes to do them, and I'll be grading you on it. Clear?"

This was another change to the students. Their teacher usually spent the first ten minutes or so of the day talking to them about interesting things they had done after school the previous day, or any tidbits from the news that she thought might interest eight year olds. But today they were moving right into the most difficult thing they had done all year.

"But Ms. Williams, we just learned how to do these. Can't we have a little more practice first? It's not fair!"

"Who ever said life was fair? It's high time you had an introduction to the concept of pop quiz." With her last words Sarah shook herself, as if realizing for the first time she was being a little cruel. But she couldn't back down now, if she let the students get away with not doing what she asked just once, she knew she would be struggling with them for the rest of the year. "How's this," she asked a little more kindly, "if you have any questions during the quiz I'll help you. Okay?"

The boy grumbled, mollified, but obviously not pleased. Sarah sighed again, rolling her eyes when she turned to the blackboard to write the problems. She could already tell it was going to be a rough day.

She sat at her desk while the students worked, occasionally getting up to help them. After the short test they went through the answers, Sarah making sure that everybody understood the mistakes that they might have made. Then she set them some new problems, more complicated this time, and went through them until the class seemed fairly comfortable with it. By then it was recess, and Sarah had never been so grateful for the bell. She wasn't on recess duty that day, so she could go the the staff room and get a much needed cup of coffee. As her class filed out the door, Emily brought something to her desk.

"Here's the book Ms. Williams," she said, somewhat shyer than usual.

"Ah, thank you Emily. I'll see you in twenty minutes."

She stared down at the red velvet book on her desk. It was small and slim, with the words _The Labyrinth_ stamped in gold. There was no author name. She opened it up, and there was no publisher, no date, no listing for the Library of Congress. The book looked old and well loved, and as she picked it up she felt a warmth of familiarity in her fingers. She felt some kind of deja vu, and for a few moments she simply sat with her eyes closed, feeling the texture of the cover. Finally her eyes snapped open and she dropped the book on her desk. She needed something to wake her up, and she needed it right now.

* * *

After recess she decided to have story time. It was usually something she saved for after lunch, but today she couldn't wait. Her class came in, rosy cheeked, laughing, breathless from their games and she gestured for them to sit on the rug they used for story time. Without a word she waited for them to seat themselves, some good natured jostling and rearranging as they all found room for themselves. After they had quited down, she opened the book and ominously read them the title.

"The _Lab_yrinth."

She proceeded to tell them the story of a young girl who had wished her baby brother away to the goblins, then make a deal with their king. If she could get through the Labyrinth to his castle within thirteen hours, she would get the child back. Otherwise he would be gone forever. Usually story time lasted about an hour, the limit that children could sit without becoming fidgety and difficult. Without realizing it Sarah read through the entire book wile they sat spellbound. She finally got the the end, and related the girls final confrontation with the Goblin King.

Sarah found her voice cracking as she said the words, "You have no power over me." She felt a profound sadness wash over her, and had to pause in her reading. _Jareth_ her mind whispered for a moment, then the name was gone. She shook herself and finished the story. After it was over she sat with her head bowed for a moment. She was overcome with emotion, and she had no idea why.

A small voice asked, "Ms. Williams? Are you okay?"

"Yes," she snapped, "I'm fine. It's time for lunch, we spent far too long reading. I guess we'll be working extra hard this afternoon, hmm?"

The class slowly got up and grabbed their lunches. Some of the girls looked like they wanted to cry at this sudden change in their teacher. One boy muttered darkly as he put on his coat, "I wish the goblins would come take Ms. _Williams_ away," while another boy nodded assent.

Sarah heard their soft mutterings and felt a stab of regret. She certainly hadn't been herself today. But before she could say anything to soften her words, the lights flickered and went out. The daylight, streaming merrily in through the windows moments before darkened as though dark storm clouds rolled in. Dark shapes moved about in the shadows, and some of the children screamed. The room was now positively swarming with dark shapes which hissed and laughed amongst themselves. There was a flash, and suddenly a strange man in swirling robes stood in the middle of the room. His arms were crossed over his chest, and he had an expression of triumph on his face.

Sarah gasped. "My god. You're him aren't you. You're the Goblin King."

His eyes darkened with some unidentifiable emotion.

"Yes Sarah. And as you've just been wished away by some thoughtless little child, you are now mine."

"I'm...what?"

He stalked slowly to her, emphasizing each word. "You. Are. Mine," and smiled joyfully.

Something in her melted at the sight of that unguarded smile, but still she stumbled back a step at his advancing form. "But, the children—"

"Won't remember anything."

"But my family—"

"You will be able to visit them eventually."

"But my—"

"But nothing. You are mine, and I am taking you with me. I've waited a long time for this, my dear." He held out his hand and waited for her to take it. She looked slowly from his hand to his eyes, his beautiful mismatched eyes. _He really is beautiful_, she said to herself. Slowly she stretched out her hand and laid it in his. She was trembling. He tried to reassure her with a comforting pressure on her hand. She smiled shakily, and he pulled her to him. With another flash, and a cloud of glitter they were gone.

* * *

Mr. Calvin, the principal, was walking through the halls to his office when he heard a ruckus coming from one of the classes. Sticking his head in the room he saw children running around, sitting in groups shouting, and playing. There was no teacher.

"Quiet!" he shouted. The classroom became deadly still. "Where is Ms. Williams?"

"We don't know, sir."

"Yeah, we came back from recess and she was gone."

"Gone? Okay, I want you all to get in your seats and find something to read. I'm going to get someone to watch you."

_Strange_, he thought, _Sarah is usually so responsible_. He set off to track her down, his previous business forgotten.


	2. Welcome to the Labyrinth

Dreams in the Night  
  
displacement

* * *

Chapter 2  
Welcome to the Labyrinth

* * *

Disclaimer: Jim Henson owns Sarah, Jareth, and Hoggle. But I own Círbara. I like her.

* * *

Sarah found herself in a large chamber in a castle. There was a throne in one corner of the room, and goblins were swarming everywhere. They were chasing chickens, laughing in groups, standing around barrels of what she guessed must be ale or beer. The Goblin King stood beside her, one hand clamped around her wrist.

"Out!" he suddenly roared. The commotion from the goblins abruptly ceased, and they scampered to leave as quickly as possible. She tried to pull away and flee with them, but he held her fast. "Not you," he said softly. As soon as the room was empty he threw his arms around her. "Sarah, Sarah, my little Sarah." He pulled back, a huge grin on his face. "You can't possibly know how..." he trailed off at the expression on her face. She looked horribly lost and afraid.

"Where are we?"

"We are in my castle. Beyond the goblin city. I am Jareth, King of the goblins."

"Jareth," she whispered looking off to the side, as if trying to remember something. He looked eagerly at her, searching her eyes for something. Coming back to herself she said coldly, "What are you going to do with me? Turn me into a goblin?"

To her surprise he looked disappointed. "Come with me, my dear. I will show you where you are to sleep." A flash of pain coursed through his eyes so quickly she thought she must have imagined it. "I have many things to show you."

He led her through the throne room, and down several halls before stopping in front of a great wooden door. It was intricately carved and she ran her fingers over the wood for a moment before she opened it. Inside was a lovely room occupied mainly by a large canopied bed. A sheer white fabric fell about it, and a pale green silk cloth served as a bed spread. She felt the cloth in delight.

A wardrobe stood against one wall, next to that was a small table with a mirror. In one corner stood a screen, behind which was a large, marble tub, sunk into the ground. A window with a small balcony was opposite the bed. As she stepped out on the balcony she saw the labyrinth stretched out before her. She gasped at how large it was. It seemed to stretch forever, rolling with the hills and valleys. Far away were distant mountains.

She turned to the Goblin King. "It's very...beautiful." He seemed pleased with her words. He turned away and gestured towards the wardrobe.

"You'll find a set of clothing in there that should fit."

"But how?"

"I've been expecting your arrival for sometime now."

"Why?"

"I'm afraid I must leave you now. Dinner is at 7 o'clock." With that, he swept out the door and down the hall, his cape billowing out behind him.

Sarah slowly shut the door. She turned back to her room, feeling lost. She threw herself on her bed and stared up at the ceiling in thought until tears came. She cried, and cried and finally was overcome by sleep.

Jareth paced his office. He had a lot of work to do, but he couldn't keep his mind on any of it. Sarah was here. Sarah was _actually_ here. He longed to go to her, to hold her. What he really wanted was to give her memories back. But he knew that was impossible. If it was found out that he had been returning her memories in her dreams, he would be in serious trouble with the High Council. No, the best thing to do was to help her create new memories.

He loved her with a desperation he had never experienced before. If she couldn't be convinced to love him back it would destroy him. But he knew he couldn't force her. It would happen naturally. It would have to happen, wouldn't it? It was only logical that if she loved him in her dreams, she would come to love him here to as well.

He knew he was only justifying things to himself. Nothing was ever assured. He hoped it wasn't the greatest mistake of his life, sending the book to that child in Sarah's class. He would have to wait things out, and see how they naturally evolved. He abhorred waiting for things he wanted, but there was nothing else to do in the situation.

For now he turned his attention to the matter at hand. What to tell Sarah about her previous experiences here. Should he deny that he ever knew her? Should he tell her of his removal of her memories? Even if he explained that it wasn't allowed for mortals to keep their memories of the Underground, he wasn't sure how she would take the news. He was sure she would feel violated. Especially if he told her they were lovers in the dream world. Although that had been all her own doing, he recalled with a smile. He had simply appeared in her dream, it was she who had first supplied the sensual settings. He agonized over what was to be done, not coming to any real conclusions. Finally he decided that it would be too dangerous to tell her about her first trip to the Underground. She would most certainly be outraged about why she was now here, but he hoped that in time she would come to love him the same way as she did in her dreams.

* * *

Sarah woke to a light knocking on her door. She was disoriented for a moment, as was usual for her after waking up. What was most _un_usual was to find herself on a soft bed surrounded by gauzy white cloth and stone walls. She sighed to herself realizing it hadn't all been a dream. But she never remembered her dreams anyways, so she didn't see how it mattered.

The knocking occurred again, this time slightly louder. "Come in," Sarah called, her throat hoarse from crying.

The door opened to reveal a goblin woman of medium height. Her green face was horribly squished, her mouth and nose were pinched close together, she had beady black eyes, and her brown hair was pulled off her face in a high ponytail. However, she looked extremely clean, which was more than Sarah could say for the other goblins she had seen. And when the goblin smiled, her face smoothed out and looked almost pleasant. Sarah found herself smiling back.

"You'll be Sarah, then." It wasn't a question. "I'm Círbara. That's with a _k_ sound, not an _s_ mind you. His majesty tells me I'm to be your maid. Dinner's in an hour. Will you be wanting a bath then?"

"Hello Círbara. A bath would be very nice."

"Good thing," the goblin woman said, "You look terrible."

Sarah climbed into the now filled tub. "I feel terrible." Her expression became bleak. "What's to become of me?" she whispered.

"Ahem," Círbara cleared her throat uncomfortably, and left her to her bath.

Twenty minutes later Sarah found herself in a short robe, surrounded by dresses.

"Well?" Círbara asked. "The blue or the red? Either one will look lovely on you."

"I really don't care. You pick one."

"You don't care?! These are the most beautiful dresses I've ever seen. I can't pick one. You must do so, my lady."

"Okay, fine," she said, exasperated. "The red one."

Círbara rolled her little black eyes. "Finally. That dress will look stunning on you, dearie. That's the perfect shade of red for your hair."

The dress was beautiful. It was a deep red, and it did seem to bring out red highlights in her hair. It also made her skin look a lovely shade of pale. As Círbara helped her into it, she realized that she truly was stuck here. She would be dressing like this for the rest of her life. The thought saddened her, but she realized there was little she could do about it. The dress laced up the back, which Círbara obligingly tied for her. After she was in the dress, she looked in the mirror.

It certainly was beautiful. Somehow the dress managed to be decadent and princess-like yet modern at the same time. It had two layers, one of lighter red, which lay the closest to her skin. It was sleeveless, with a neckline that plunged dangerously in both the front and the back. The outer layer, made of darker red cloth was more of a long, sleeveless jacket, which at least covered her back. It cinched in the waist, somewhat accentuating her bust line, but there was nothing to do about that. The dress came to the ground, hiding her feet. Which was well, because there were no shoes to go with the dress, and she had to wear the sneakers she had on when Jareth took her.

Círbara sighed. "You look lovely, m'dear. Certainly good enough to dine with the King. Now, what do we do with your hair."

"Nothing."

"Oh, but couldn't I—"

"No," she repeated stubbornly. "Nothing. I'll wear it just like this." Her hair was still tangled from her bath, but it hung long down her back. She wasn't sure why she didn't want it put up, but it felt comforting to have it down, as though she could hide in it if she needed. She also didn't want it to seem like she had put too much effort into looking nice for the king.

"Okay, okay. Let me at least brush it out for you, then."

"Done." She quirked a sideways grin at her maid. She like this goblin.

"Sit here, m'dear." Círbara indicated a chair in front of the window. She smiled to herself when she saw the white owl which had settled a tree nearby, looking in at the two of them, then flew off when he caught Círbara's gaze. "Well, well."

"Hmm?"

"Oh, um, I was just thinking to brush a little of this in your hair." She pulled a jar out of the dressing table which, when opened, revealed a type of sticky salve that smelled like coconuts.

"What is _that_?"

"Just trust me, dearie." She scooped out a little bit of the oily goop, and spread it into Sarah's hair. After brushing out the worst snarls, she began to brush vigorously. Soon the goopy mess had been distributed equally throughout the mass of hair, which now shone and glistened where the light hit it. "All finished. And just in time too. I'll show you where the dining hall is."

Círbara led Sarah through the castle, and left her at a large set of double doors. "Just through there, dearie. I'll see to you in the morning."

"Thank you for everything, Círbara."

"No need to go thanking me," the little goblin replied, flustered. "Only doing m'job." But Sarah caught the faint blush to her green cheeks and smiled. She pushed the doors open and entered, still smiling.

* * *

Jareth turned anxiously at the sound of the doors. His breath caught when he saw how radiant Sarah looked. She had a glowing smile on her face, and she looked absolutely stunning in that dress. Her dark hair tumbled luxuriously about her shoulders, and he longed to run his fingers through it. He longed to press his face to her hair, her neck, the swell of her breasts under her dress. He knew however that he could do none of these things, and he willed his desire down. It wouldn't do to frighten the girl, after all she had no memory of their past...encounters.

"Sarah," he said as she came to stand before him.

She dropped down into a curtsy. "Your Majesty."

He stiffened in surprise. "Don't do that," he said sharply. "Whatever would possess you to do that?"

"I—I don't know," she stammered. "Everyone else seems to call you that. It just seemed appropriate."

He sighed. This was going to be harder than he thought. It was extremely difficult to separate the Sarah he knew from this exquisite and confused creature in front of him. "Didn't I tell you to call me Jareth?" he asked quietly.

"I'm sorry, _Jareth._"

Closing his eyes, he cringed inwardly at the way she bit out his name, but tried to ignore it.  
He must not lose his temper. _She is frightened,_ he thought to himself. _You cannot afford to let her goad you into an argument_. "You are entirely forgiven. Shall we eat?" He led her to the table, and pulled her chair out for her. These simple things were what he was missing from their dreams. He found great pleasure in these tiniest of gestures such as seating her. He sat down across the table from her and indicated that she lift the lid from her plate.

She removed the silver dome to display the plate of chicken swimming in a creamy mushroom sauce. "This is my favorite!" she exclaimed. His heart leapt for a moment, until she fixed him with a suspicious glare.

"Really? How extraordinary," he replied blandly, knowing full well it was her favorite dish. He had specially requested it for her. "By all means, begin."

Throughout dinner Jareth found himself distracted by Sarah, the little things he missed out on by being confined to her dreams. The curious way she held her silverware. The little contented sounds she made after an especially pleasing mouthful. The way she held one hand, palm up, limply in her lap as she drank from her goblet. He realized for the past three years that he had been Sarah's lover, he had really not known much about her. He very much looked forward to learning.

Sarah was also engaged in observing her dinner companion. He ate with an elegant grace that she could never hope to achieve. His wild hair gleamed in the fading sunlight. He was dressed in tight black breeches which left little to the imagination, a flowing white shirt that was open halfway down his chest, displaying an unusual medallion. It had a circular design in the middle, and two downward curving horns on either side. _An upside down crescent_, she realized. There was also a well worn brown leather jacket with wide lapels which spanned the width of his shoulders. He looked extremely comfortable.

Sarah looked again at his eyes, the edges which swept up towards his temples, the design patterned there. The shocking mismatched irises. He was extremely beautiful. But she couldn't afford to be distracted by beauty. She had to go home.

"Why am I here?" she asked abruptly.

Laying his silverware aside, Jareth looked calmly at her. "You know very well why. A child wished you away to me."

"Isn't that convenient," she replied snidely.

"Yes, it is. Is it my fault that your little students had such little regard for you as a teacher that they wished my goblins would take you?" He said that somewhat harshly, and struggled to control his anger. After all, it _was_ his fault. It was he who had placed a spell on Sarah, making her crankier than usual, it was he who had given the book to the child. He had totally orchestrated her return, but Sarah must never know that.

"How long must I stay here?"

"As long as I wish it."

"Okay, how long do you _wish_ it?"

He looked at her a long moment, finally replying in a soft tone. "Forever."

With that Sarah got up and ran from the room, tears spilling down her cheeks. The Goblin King sat, his head bowed over his plate. _That did not go well at all_, the thought sadly to himself.

* * *

Back in her room, Sarah tore at the laces behind her back, struggling to get loose of the dress. Earlier she had felt lovely in it, but now she felt constricted, trapped. She finally stepped out of it, letting it crumple to the floor. Looking in the wardrobe, she found a long, white silk negligee, with a matching robe. She slipped into these garments, reveling briefly in their softness before throwing herself into bed. She had to think of a way out of here. She had to. Before she could formulate any plans, exhaustion took over, and she fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

She was dreaming about her class. They sat quietly, working on some assignment. There was a strange woman sitting at her desk. Sarah realized that she was somehow standing outside the window even though it was three stories up. She pounded on the glass, trying to get someone's attention, trying to let them know she was still here. She screamed and screamed, but no one could hear her. She saw Tommy raise his hand to ask for the bathroom, and the woman granted his request with a smile.

"Sarah."

She turned quickly to the quiet voice at her side. It was the Goblin King.

"You," she said coldly. "What are _you_ doing here? Can't I even escape you in my dreams?"

He let out a short, bitter laugh at that, and grabbed her hand. "Come with me."

"No!" She jerked away, and suddenly she was falling. The school disappeared, and she was falling, falling through darkness.

She landed with a thump on a dark bed. She wore the negligee she had worn earlier to bed. Jareth lay next to her. She looked around, realized where they were, their proximity, and buried her face in her hands. "Please, can't you let me go? I'm not a child to be wished away. I have a life back home. I have friends, I have family. I have responsibilities."

He watched her cry softly into her hands for a moment, then deciding something, brushed his hand over the crown of her head. At her sharp intake of breath as he returned her memories, he felt a sigh of relief. Even if he had Sarah in real life, right now it was no substitute for the woman in his dreams.

She looked up at him joyfully. "Is it true? Am I really here?"

"Sarah, we are still in your dream. Yes, I have finally brought you to my castle, but you are finding it extremely difficult to adapt to what has happened. You seem to feel nothing for me now but revulsion."

"Jareth no!" she cried, and flung herself around his neck. "I love you!" He drew his arms around her gratefully, and buried his face in her neck, as he had wanted to do earlier.

"I admit," she said slowly, "I am confused. I remember what I felt like during the day. I'm afraid. And I want to go home. I still think you're beautiful during the day, but...treacherous somehow." He tightened his grip on her. "You can't let me know of my first trip while I'm awake, can you." He shook his head sadly, face still hidden in her neck.

"No," he said, his voice muffled. "I do not know what would happen to us if I did that. You must come to love me without the memories of our time together. Sarah—"

"Shhhhh, give me time. I've had quite the shock. Maybe bring my old friends to meet me again, that might give me some security."

He nodded. And began kissing her where her shoulder met her neck. She let her arms drop as she gave herself to the pleasure he was creating. "Mmmmm."

* * *

The next morning she woke to the pounding of Círbara on her door.

"Breakfast!" the goblin called cheerfully. "Hurry and eat! You're to have a tour of the grounds today."

Sarah sat up and stretched luxuriously. She had been having the most wonderful dream. He body throbbed for a moment, but she shook herself and came fully awake.

She began tucking in to the tray Círbara set on her bed. There was fresh fruit and slices of thick brown bread with a soft cheese to spread over it. It was delicious.

"Th' grounds?" she managed to ask, her mouth full.

Círbara rolled her eyes. "Don't you have any manners girl? Yes, the grounds! Don't you want to see the gardens? Maybe take a small trip through the labyrinth? It's going to be a beautiful day!"

And indeed it was. As Círbara threw back the curtains, the bright sunlight streamed into the room, and Sarah could see nothing but blue sky. Círbara pulled out a light cotton dress, light blue with a small pattern of pale yellow flowers. "This will do nicely. Finish up your breakfast now. It's set to be pretty hot today."

The dress buttoned up the front, so Sarah had no problem dressing herself. Círbara bustled around the room, making the bed, and cleaning up the remnants of breakfast.

"Círbara, I can do that," called Sarah from behind the dressing screen as she struggled to button the many tiny buttons that lined the front of the dress.

"What kind of a maid would I be, letting you clean your own room?"

"I'm just not used to having people wait on me."

"Never mind that. Heh, I'm happy to do it."

"Okay, then. I tried." Smiling, she stepped out from behind the screen. This dress didn't fall quite so low, only to about mid calve. She stepped into her sneakers and stood before the mirror. "Hmmm, kind of mars the effect, don't you think? Well, at least I'm comfortable."

Círbara tutted to herself, and made a mental note to get the castle cobbler up here for shoes. The King had been able to provide approximations for her dresses, _And how does he know her sizes, I wonder,_ but they were not able to create shoes for Sarah before she came.

Sarah sat down before the mirror to brush out her hair. "Círbara," she asked shyly, "Do you think you could..." she trailed off.

"Course, dearie, course. My mind was off and runnin'. You just let me brush it out for you." Sarah sighed in pleasure as Cirbara stroked the thick brush through her hair.

Fifteen minutes later, Círbara was leading Sarah towards the throne room.

* * *

"Now, do we understand each other, Higgle?"

"It's _Hog_gle!"

"Yes, yes. Do we understand each other Hoggle?"

"I think so. You're sayin' Sarah's here, but she's all grows'd up, and she don't remember anythin' about me."

"Indeed. So don't go ruining anything for her, or telling her anything about her previous trip here. She can't know anything about it. If you let anything slip, so help me, I'll tip you headfirst into the—"

"Good morning," a feminine voice called from across the room. "Am I...interrupting something?"

Jareth stood up from where he had been threatening the little dwarf. "Nothing," he replied. "This dwarf is to be your guide through the labyrinth. No harm will come to you as long as you are with him." He strode from the room, pausing at the door. "Enjoy yourself," he said, halfway over his shoulder, and left them alone.

Sarah released a breath she wasn't even aware she had been holding. That man, infuriating as he could be, was certainly a presence.

"Hello, I'm Sarah." She waited politely for the little dwarf to introduce himself, but he just stared at her. He was very short, came to below her waist. He had a large nose, and deep set eyes, with expressive, bushy eyebrows. He was dressed strangely, in a leather vest with a horribly leering face on the back. A small pouch at his waist jingled when he moved. "And that would make you..." Sarah prompted.

"Uh, Hoggle," he said, breaking out of his daze.

"Nice to meet you," she said pleasantly. "Shall we?"

"'Course."

He led her through the castle, out to the gardens. They were very beautiful. The gardens were gown in neat little squares, with soft grass in between for walking on. Each square was bordered carefully with white stones, piled several inches high, presumably to keep out the grass. Yet within each square was wild growth, exploding every which way. Sometimes there was only one variety of flower, sometimes several colors of the same type of flower. Sometimes the colors matched, and sometimes they clashed horribly.

It was nice to see a garden that wasn't totally ordered. Sarah remembered her stepmother's garden, and how it always had to be so perfect. She would probably pass out if she saw this madness, Sarah thought with a grin. As for herself, she liked the feeling of barely constrained chaos. It was volatile, and passionate. It was _real_.

She and Hoggle began to talk, and Sarah told him of her life. He was particularly interested in her brother for some reason, and seemed very satisfied when she told him how much she loved the boy. She told him about being a teacher, and how much it meant to her. He told her about tending the gate of the labyrinth. He talked about how it could sometimes be lonely, but he enjoyed solitude for the most part. She said she didn't handle lonely very well, and maybe would he like to visit her in the castle sometimes? She said she could use a friend in this place.

She didn't know why, but she felt a great affinity for this little dwarf. She felt she could trust him, even if he was a little touchy and rough around the edges. When she asked him what was in his pouch, he put a hand on it and eyed her suspiciously. "Them's mine!" he had responded. She had laughed, and asked, "What do you think I'm going to do, steal them?" He had grumbled to himself, but not said anything.

He finally asked if she would like to see the labyrinth. She had declined, saying maybe another time. For now, she was content to sit in the garden with him, in comfortable silence, interspersed with random conversation. Someone brought lunch to them, and they spent the entire day lounging in the cool shade of the trees. She picked a small bouquet, and then it was time for dinner.

"Will you come to see me soon?" Sarah asked.

"I suppose," he replied gruffly. She just smiled, and said goodbye.

She brought the flowers inside and put them in a vase in her room. Círbara drew her a bath, and she was soon ready for dinner. This time Círbara convinced her to wear her hair up, and as an afterthought wove a few of the flowers Sarah had picked into her hair.

Little was said at dinner. Jareth complimented her on her dress, and asked if she had enjoyed the gardens. Sarah gave short, perfunctory answers. Maybe if she wasn't a good conversationalist he would send her home. The silence stretched as he ran out of things to say, but it grated on her after the comfortable silences earlier that day with Hoggle. After dinner he bade her goodnight, and wished her a good night's sleep with a strange gleam in his eyes.

* * *

Yaay, chapter 2! I just had to bring some other characters in, although I'm having a hard time doing Hoggle's dilogue. I know his throwing in of s's isn't random, but I haven't quite got the pattern down yet.   
  
In the next chapter I want to bring in Didymus and Ludo, and maybe make things a little easier on Sarah. Or maybe not. Hee!  



	3. Sarah makes some changes

The next day found Sarah on a tour of the castle, this time with a strange guide. He was an excitable terrier, named Sir Didymus. He wore a large hat, complete with a trailing feather. He bounced about energetically as he guided her through the stone hallways, and endless rooms.

"Forsooth, milady, the castle is large, and there is much to see. I am expressly charged with the duty of showing you your hearts desire. Wither shall we wander?"

She smothered a grin at his enthusiasm. "Is there a library in the castle?"

"Verily! To the library!" And he charged off.

"Wait! Good sir, I cannot run as quickly as you!"

"A thousand pardons, milady," and he swept off his hat, bowing to her. "We shall progress in a pace more to your liking."

He led her to the library, where she gasped with wonder. They were in a large circular room, with shelves and windows all around. The light was bright and friendly, dust motes swirled through the air. Large velvet couches and comfortable looking chairs were grouped in the center of the room, where small tables and soft looking footstools invited any reader. She looked through the shelves closest to her, and to her surprise saw books from Aboveground, mixed with those in a language she could not read.

She moaned happily. "I could spend my life in this room."

"This pleases milady?" Sir Didymus asked hopefully.

"Oh yes, very much!"

"Then I shall leave you to it."

"Must you leave so soon?"

He looked at her, subdued for a quick moment. "That is the way you must do it," he said softly, as if he had forgotten she was there.

"Didymus?"

"Sooth, milady," he said, coming to himself. "You shall be fine on your own?"

"Yes, thank you noble sir."

"My lady." Once again he swept off his hat, bowed low. Then he was off through the door, growling and talking to himself.

Sarah wandered, looking through the many shelves. She found many books she was able to read, although most of them were antiquated by Aboveground standards. She also found some books about the Underground that were in English, and pulled one out to flip through it. She was quickly lost in the many names and places she read. She decided to skip the history lesson for now, and indulge herself in fiction. She finally pulled a small selection from the shelves and made herself comfortable on the chairs.

Again someone brought her lunch, and again she wiled the day away, reading to her hearts content. Again she dressed for dinner, and ate with the Goblin King, who seemed to have given up on conversation, and they ate their meal completely in silence.

The days passed like this, lounging all day reading, walking through the gardens or the labyrinth, which she eventually entered with Hoggle, and another friend she met, a large, fierce looking, but extremely gently creature named Ludo. She felt safe with these two, and loved spending time with them. Sometimes Sir Didymus came on these explorations, he seemed to be fast friends with Ludo. Eventually however, she began to stay longer and longer in the library, rarely venturing outside to see her friends.

She felt like she had come to a standstill. Ever since Jareth had stolen her away, her life had simply stopped. She wasn't growing, she wasn't changing. In some ways she had incredible freedoms in the Underground, she had few responsibilities, but she also felt she had no importance. She was a decoration. Her time with Jareth did not help to ease her feelings. He practically ignored her now. And she did the same. The only time she ever saw him was at dinner.

She began to slip into a depression. She felt wrenched in half, all she wanted to do was sleep. He watched from a distance with increasing misery as she fell further and further. She would not let him into her heart during the day as she did at night. There was nothing he could do to help her.

In truth, he had somewhat given up on her ever coming to love him during the day. He had her at night, and he didn't think he would ever have anything else. She begged him in her dreams not to give up on her, tried to give him ideas of what he could do to win her over. But nothing worked. She chastised him about his indifference to her during the day. For his part, he found it extremely difficult to face her in the daylight, knowing the searing passion waiting for him after the sun went down. It tore his heart in half to see the cold looks sent his way during their silent and painful dinners. In many ways it was exactly like it was before he took her. But to be so close to her now, and yet in many ways even further away, was torture.

"Jareth, I've had it."

He looked over at her, panting harshly. He was lying limply on his back, and not able to do much more at the moment, not after the earth-shattering sex they had just engaged in.

"Guh?"

She looked over at him and laughed. "Did you just say, _guh_?" she asked incredulously.

He quickly pulled himself together. "No. I said, 'Tell me my dearest, whatever do you have on your mind?'" He raised one eyebrow at her. "Now tell me what you mean," he demanded.

"I just meant that we really have to figure something out about this whole situation. Not only is it extremely depressing, it's monumentally stupid. I love you. You love me. But when I'm awake all I can think about is how to trick you into sending me home. It's been months now, Jareth."

"That it has," he replied softly.

"Can't you just let me keep my memories? For just one day?"

"For the thousandth time little Sarah, _no_! It would simply confuse everyone around you at this point, and word might get to the wrong people. That is positively not an option."

"Well, we need _something_! I'm talking about something drastic. We need something to shake everything up. Especially us. I mean, me," she corrected quickly at the outraged look on his face. "Definitely just me," she said, breaking into a grin.

"Okay then," he said, "Something drastic." At the expectant look on her face he exclaimed, "What, _now_? I can't think of something right now! I need some time. I need to plan this carefully."

She rolled her eyes. "Why don't you just grab me and kiss the living daylights out of me?"

"Sarah," he responded, "You know exactly what it's like during the day. You know exactly how you feel. Do you really think that would work?"

"No, I guess not."

"Okay then. Just give me some time, I'll think of something."

"Something _crafty_," she clarified.

"Yes my dear, something crafty." Having fully recovered, he bent to kiss her neck, quickly losing himself in her once more

Sarah woke the next morning feeling fantastic. She felt happy and settled in a way she hadn't since coming back to the labyrinth. The feeling quickly passed however, and once it was gone she forgot it had ever been there.

It was this fleeting, unremembered happiness which caused Sarah to want to sleep so much, even if she wasn't aware of it. The lingering happiness caused in her by the Jareth in her dreams was the only thing she looked forward to all day. This almost Pavlovian response to creating the desire for sleep was a major contributing factor to Sarah's depression, the _most_ difficult in fact simply because she was unaware of it.

She burrowed down into her covers, trying to hold on to sleep. A knock at the door made this impossible. Círbara came bustling in.

"Wake up, wake up. It's a beautiful day. You don't want to laze around in bed all day do you?"

Sarah cringed at the chipper tone in the little goblins voice. "Yes, in fact I do. Go'way."

Círbara rolled her eyes. "Now, now. None of that. Don't make me force you up, young woman. I don't think you'll find it that pleasant"

Círbara had watched helplessly as Sarah slid into depression, and she wasn't going to stand for it any longer. She didn't know exactly what was happening to the young woman, but she could tell there was some funny business happening with Sarah and the King. All she knew was that a child had wished Sarah away, everyone knew that, but what she didn't understand was why Jareth insisted on keeping Sarah at the castle. Anyone else he would of placed into the Underground long ago.

However, adults were very rarely wished away, and there were really no guidelines to go by. She couldn't even remember it ever happening in her lifetime. But the fact that Sarah was so obviously miserable, and yet the King still did nothing, was very fishy in Círbara's eyes. She had tried speaking to Sarah about it, but the only thing she would say was that she wanted to go home. She knew that she couldn't speak to Jareth about it, he would never stand for such insolence. Círbara just wasn't sure what to do. But something had to be done. Of that she was sure.

"Mmm." Sarah groaned, and nestled even further into the bed clothing.

"Okay, just remember you asked for it." Círbara grabbed the covers at the foot of the bed, and with a mighty tug that belied her diminutive shape, she wrenched the covers off Sarah's now shivering body.

"Hey!" While Sarah sounded outraged, she also sounded fully awake.

"Told you. Guess I woke you up though, eh?"

Sarah narrowed her eyes at Círbara's cackling laughter. Her mouth twisted as she obviously tried to hide the smile that threatened to break loose. "I don't think it's very funny." But now she was outright grinning.

Círbara thought that she hadn't seen Sarah look so alive, so _there_ in a long while, and a rude awakening was very worth it. "Would you like a bath this morning, dearie?"

Sarah looked down at herself. She realized she hadn't bathed in a few days. Her hair was snarled from sleep, and she felt extremely grimy. "That sounds good."

Sarah undressed behind the screen and stepped into the tub. Círbara had filled with with bubbles today, something she had never done before.

"What's all this?" she asked her goblin friend.

"Oh, those are called bubbles."

Sarah suppressed a smile. "Yes, I know. But why now? Why today?"

"Well, I talked to a friend of mine who said that people Aboveground put bubbles in their baths. I thought you might like it. Is it okay?" Círbara was a little anxious. She didn't want to do anything to break the first good mood she had seen Sarah in for months.

"Yes, it's very nice." Círbara smiled and went about her business, making up the totally destroyed bed, and putting other things in order. After about ten minutes she heard Sarah say something.

"What's that, dearie?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just—I'm a little surprised I guess."

"Surprised?" Círbara couldn't think why Sarah might be feeling surprised. She'd already explained about the bubbles.

"Yes. I thought that, well I guess I thought that this would make me miss home."

"But it doesn't?"

"No it doesn't." Paradoxically Sarah looked slightly sad at that prospect. Círbara came and laid her scaly hand on Sarah's bare shoulder.

"Maybe that means you're starting to feel like this is your home."

Sarah looked at Círbara with slightly dulled eyes. Covering Círbara's hand with her own, she sighed. "Maybe you're right." She sounded defeated. Círbara was about to say something to comfort her, but Sarah interrupted her. "Maybe you're right," she said again, but this time she sounded much stronger, as if she was coming to a resolution.

She looked briefly at Círbara. "You've been so good to me, Círbara. I don't know how I would have made it through all this without you. You know just when to kick my ass a little."

"Humph, maybe you need more than just a little."

Sarah grinned, as she knew this was the only response she would get out of her gruff little goblin friend on the subject.

"Well, since you've decided not to be such a laze-a-bed, what are you going to do today? Not spend it wasting away in that library I hope."

Sarah grimaced. "I guess I have been spending a lot of time in there, haven't I?"

"That you have. Too much reading isn't healthy. You need to exercise your body sometimes too, young woman."

Sarah made a face. "Yes mother."

Círbara looked at her, confused. "What?"

At the tone of her voice, Sarah laughed. "Sorry. It's just an expression."

"You watch yourself girlie, or I'll give you something to express yourself about."

Sarah laughed, delighted at what she knew to be a completely empty threat. Círbara could get to the point quicker then anyone she had ever met, but Sarah had never seen her be anything but helpful and kind. Even if her kindness took somewhat _unusual_ forms from time to time.

Círbara smiled to herself at the abrupt change in Sarah. If all it had taken was a slightly rough hand, she would have done it ages ago. She laid out a dress for Sarah to wear, slightly heavy as it was a little chilly out today. It looked like rain, but Círbara was too happy to think about Sarah going outside for a change to worry about the weather.

After her bath Sarah dressed. The dress was made from a soft wool, dyed such a dark blue it looked almost black. The skirt was long, and started slightly below her hips. The bodice of the dress buttoned up the back, a long row of tiny ivory buttons. It fitted her narrow waist perfectly, flaring out slightly for her hips before coming to the skirt. It was a scoop necked dress, not too low cut, but still showing a little bit of cleavage. The long sleeves came to slightly below her wrists. She was glad the dress was long enough, back in the Aboveground she had a difficult time finding clothes which fit her. Her limbs were so long, sleeves and pant legs were always several inches too short on her. Accustomed to pushing sleeves up to her elbows when they were slightly too short, Sarah though having clothes which were slightly too _long_ was quite a luxury. She wondered, not for the first time, how the tailor who made these dresses could know her preferences so perfectly without ever having met her.

Círbara buttoned her up the back, and went to retrieve her sneakers. Even though Sarah had several pairs of fine shoes by now, she refused to wear them. She had told Círbara over and over that she wanted to wear comfortable shoes, even if they looked terrible with the luxurious dresses. But today something was making Sarah want to wear the elegant shoes. Maybe it was the heavy material of the dress making her realize how ridiculous it was to wear running shoes with such beautiful clothing, or maybe it was the general good mood she was in.

"Círbara, do you think I should try those shoes today?" She pointed to the delicate black slippers in the bottom of her wardrobe.

"Really?! I mean, yes, I think that would look lovely, m'dear."

Sarah smiled a little at Círbara's cover. "I don't think I've ever even tried them on, have I?"

"I don't know dearie, but there's no time like the present."

Sarah slipped into the little black shoes, sighing at their comfort. If she had knows the soft cloth would feel this good against her feet, she would have worn them a long time ago.

Sarah stepped delicately through the trees. She had wanted to take a long walk today, to think about things. For that reason she didn't call Hoggle or Ludo or any of her other friends to come with her. She knew that Hoggle had told her not to wander around by herself, especially in the labyrinth, but today she did not heed that advice. Besides, she rationalized to herself, the weather looked terrible, and she didn't want to subject anyone else to it simply because she had a mind to walk around a bit.

So she picked her way through the forest, lost in her own thoughts. She realized that she had been acting extremely out of character for herself. She had never really been depressed before, so she didn't know what the symptoms were like. Her lethargy had been caused by that, she was sure. It was simply time for her to accept the fact that she was never going to go home. She was stuck in the castle forever, and it would be better if she stopped thinking along the lines of being stuck and trapped. Her life had taken a turn that she could not have foreseen, but wasn't it better to accept it and move on? That had to be better than sleeping all day and locked in a library trying to forget where she was.

Another factor she had to think about was Jareth. She only ever saw him at dinner, and then he practically ignored her. But every once in a while she caught an expression on his face, a longing that she did not understand. If he was somehow longing for her, why did he ignore her? It had to be something else. But she could not figure out what. He had made several cryptic remarks since she had come here, alluding to the fact that he knew things about her. But how could he know her favorite meal, or her sleeve length unless he had been spying on her? And why would he spy on her if he didn't care about her, wanted only to ignore her? Her head started to hurt thinking about it.

While she wandered further and further from the castle, lost to her musings, Sarah failed to notice the dark clouds gathering. Suddenly a fierce wind picked up, whipping her skirts around her legs. Her hair, caught in an updraft, swirled around her head, blinding and choking her. Then the clouds opened, and a heavy rain poured down. Even the trees were no shelter from the freezing rain. Her dress was instantly soaked through, and her hair was matted to her face. The forest was deadly still except for the sound of the falling rain, it seemed all the creatures that lived here had enough sense to seek shelter, even if she didn't.

Without warning large pieces of ice began to fall with the rain. It was some kind of magical ice storm that Sarah was caught in. Realizing that she could be in real danger, Sarah cried out, huddling under a tree with her arms flung over her head. She was soaked through to the skin now, and her arms were cut in several places where the strange ice had cut her. She shivered violently and cried to herself, waiting for the freak storm to be over.

Jareth sat on his throne, lazily balancing a crystal on his finger tips. He had a lot of work that needed to be done today, orders of food and other goods to be filled for the castle. He should really take a trip to the fields and make a surprise visit to see how well the goblins were doing. But he couldn't think of anything except Sarah. He sighed, thinking about her dreams last night. He had to think of a plan to win her heart. He knew that he could someday give her memories back to her. Even though he had told her over and over that it was impossible, if she came to love him willingly here, in this life, he would be allowed to give them back to her. The trick was getting her to love him. She hated him for all he could tell. Maybe if he had a fabulous dinner, asked her to dance perhaps. He could arrange something like the ball from her dreams during her first trip here. That might trigger some subconscious feelings for him. Flicking the crystal into his palm he looked in it to see Sarah. He usually did this several times a day, when he couldn't bear not seeing her. This time however he dropped the crystal in shock. It shattered on the stone floor, shaking him out of his mental state. With another quick hand gesture he disappeared.

A split second later he reappeared at Sarah's side. She had a large gash on her head and was sprawled out under a tree. The sun was peaking through the clouds now, the ice storm had run its course, but Jareth could easily see what had happened. She had left the castle by herself, even though he had expressly threatened Hoggle into _never_ letting her out of his sight when they left the castle. Grinding his teeth together with rage, Jareth gently picked Sarah up in his arms. He was a little afraid by how light she was, but the gash did not appear to be too deep on closer inspection. Also, while her color was pale, she did not look too deathly. He hoped she would be alright.

He appeared suddenly in his bedroom, still holding Sarah in his arms. She was shivering, and he took that as a good sign that her body hadn't completely shut down. He knew that he had to get her out of the wet clothes she had on. He didn't want to use his magic in case she had more damage than he thought, so he simply ripped through the buttons lining her back. They popped off, flying everywhere, and he slipped the dress from her body. Now he wrapped her in his bed clothes, rubbing her legs gently to increase circulation. She moaned and began to stir.

"Sarah."

"Mmm."

"Sarah, are you alright?"

"Wha?"

"I found you outside. I think you cut yourself." She was in fact bleeding all over his pillows, but he paid it no mind.

She opened her eyes and looked at him weakly. "What happened?"

"You left the castle alone. I'm assuming that's what happened right? I know that miserable little dwarf wouldn't have left you, no matter how big a coward he is."

Her eyes began to glow with anger.

"You were caught in a storm. You must have been hit on the head by a falling icicle. What possessed you to go out there today? This part of the Underground is famous for its dangerous storms, especially this time of year."

"Well, how was I supposed to know?" Sarah cried. "No one told me! I only wanted some time by myself to think." Lookinh around Sarah realized she had never been in this room, but it was somehow familiar. The soft cloth under her hand was a texture she knew. "Where are we?"

"I brought you back here to get you warm." Suddenly he realized how she was probably going to react to him bringing her to his room.

"Yes, but where is _this_?"

"It's...my bedchamber."

"Why would you bring me here?" Her voice had gone cool, but he sensed her anger underneath it.

"I don't know. I wasn't thinking clearly. I was acting on instinct. Would you rather I had left you there to freeze or bleed to death?"

The fire left her eyes. "No," she said quietly. She looked down at her hands, seeing the trickle of blood that still ran down one arm.

Sighing he held his hand to her head. She flinched slightly, but allowed him to touch her. She felt a heat under his hand, and a slightly itching feeling. When he took his hand away she had stopped bleeding and her skin was whole. Grabbing one arm, he did the same thing. He was concentrating so intently he didn't notice her staring at him. Finally his eyes flicked to her face and he caught her intent gaze. Pulling away he simply looked back at her.

"Thank you," she said finally, rubbing at her arm where he had healed it. It tickled.

"You're welcome." He stared at her for a moment longer, before standing. "You will have dinner with me tonight. It will be extremely formal, but Círbara will tend to you. I will see you at seven." With that he abruptly turned to leave the room.

"Wait!" Sarah cried. "I don't know where I am. How do I get back to my own room?"

He turned and looked at her once again. Without a word he waved his hand at her, and the room dissolved into her own. "I hate it when he does that," she muttered under her breath. Realizing the blankets she had been wrapped in were gone, Sarah looked down at her nearly naked body. All she wore was a silk camisole with a small pair of matching panties. She groaned to herself knowing Jareth had seen her like this, and threw herself on the bed. She was exhausted.


	4. Reconciliation

Sarah woke after a long nap and lay staring at the arched ceiling above her bed. After her eventful morning she was glad to have some distance from what had happened. She very well might have died; if it wasn't for Jareth then at the very least she might still be out there, stumbling towards the castle, bleeding and attracting god knows what to her. How had he known she needed him?

That last thought startled her. Was it really Jareth she needed? Anyone could have come across and helped her. How had he known?

A tentative knock interrupted her thoughts. Círbara came into the room, her eyes cast on the floor. She stood at the foot of Sarah's bed and was still.

"What's wrong with you?" Sarah had never seen this behavior before in her friend.

"It's all my fault." Círbara still wouldn't meet Sarah's eyes.

"What?"

"You got _hurt_. It's my fault. I'm the one who suggested you go outside. I had no idea you would walk beyond the castle and the goblin city. It's my fault. I should have sent for someone to go with you. _I_ should have gone with you. I should have done something!" By now Círbara was trembling. There was a note of misery in her voice that Sarah had never heard, not from anyone.

"Círbara," she began gently, "Nothing that happened was your fault. I don't blame you. It was my own stupidity that made me get hurt. There was nothing you or anyone could have done."

"But I—"

"No."

"But—"

"_No_. Please don't blame yourself. That will only make me feel worse."

"I'm sorry m'dear, but you can't convince me otherwise. I am responsible for you while you remain in this castle. It _is_ my fault."

Sarah sighed. She could see she was getting nowhere with the goblin. "Okay then. I forgive you."

"Now don't try—what?"

Sarah smiled. "I said, I forgive you."

"Oh," said Círbara in a small voice. A smile crept at the corner of her mouth. "Thank you, dearie. That actually makes me feel better."

"Good. And it's not as if I came to any real harm. I was a little cut up, but Jareth healed me."

"His _Majesty_?"

"Yes. Why?"

"His Majesty is the one who brought you back?"

"_Yes_." Sarah was beginning to get exasperated. The little goblin had switched emotions so quickly Sarah was finding it hard to keep up. Where at first she had looked miserable, now she looked distinctly calculating.

"I see, I see. Well, that explains it, then."

"Hmm?"

"I just received orders to dress you in this for dinner." Círbara walked over to the wardrobe and opened it. A sugary, puffy, silvered pink dress hung there, waiting to be worn. Sarah got out of bed and walked over curiously. Pulling at the skirt to examine the material she let out an exclamation.

"No way in hell. There is _no way_ that I am going to wear this dress."

Círbara wrung her hands. This was not going to be easy. Perhaps it was time to use a little guilt.

"Please dearie! After what happened this morning, if I displease the king any more he will have me punished. Please, don't make me spend the rest of my life in the bog of eternal stench!"

Despite herself, Sarah laughed. She had heard many creatures referring to this bog of eternal stench (what a name!) but as she had never smelled it herself she could not be truly sympathetic. It was the pleading in Círbara's eyes which finally decided her.

"Okay. But I'm doing this for you, not for him."

"That works for me."

Círbara had very specific orders for how Sarah was to look tonight. Sarah already had one bath this morning, but after getting caught in an ice storm, she probably would want another. After bathing, Círbara did Sarah's hair. She swept it up in an elaborate style and wove delicate silver vines into it. It took a long time, but finally it looked the way Círbara was told to make it look.

Next was the dress. Sarah cringed to herself as she slipped into it. The skirt was voluminous, wispy pink material surrounded her. The bodice was tight, as were the lower sleeves. The upper sleeves however, fluffed out to extraordinary lengths. She felt like a layered cake, or some other desserty concoction. This was the kind of dress a fifteen year old would think was the pinnacle of sophistication. She felt absolutely ridiculous. But she had promised Círbara, so she gritted her teeth and bore it.

Finally it was time to leave for dinner. Sarah felt her cheeks flame as she stepped out of her room, even with no one around she was embarrassed to be seen like this. It was going to be horrible to wear this in front of Jareth. Was he doing this to humiliate her? To punish her for forcing him to rescue her? Whatever it was, she was determined not to give him any satisfaction.

* * *

Pausing before the doors to the dining hall, Sarah tried to regain some composure. Although it would be easier, she thought, if she didn't have to worry about choking to death on the dress. Taking a deep breath, she pushed the doors open.

It was empty.

"What is this?" she demanded loudly. "Some kind of _joke_?" She was furious. She felt tricked. The only thing worse than wearing this dress was wearing it for no reason. Turing on her heel, Sarah prepared to stomp back to her room. She turned so fast, however, she ran straight into the very person for whom she was contemplating murder. Jareth.

"I assure you, it is no joke. We shall be dining in another room tonight." Gallantly offering her his arm, he looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to take it. Without thinking she did so.

He led her down the hallway, watching her contemplatively. "You are displeased about something?"

She was burning with the desire to yell at him for forcing her into the poofy mess she wore. But instead she asked, relatively calmly and through clenched teeth, "Why this dress?"

He looked slightly shocked. "You don't like it? But I thought—"

"You thought what? That I _liked_ looking as though I belonged on top of a cake?"

"But you—"

"Look ridiculous, I know."

"Oh, I _am_ sorry. I thought this would be pleasing to you. I should have known better. Please accept my apologies."

"Umm." Sarah didn't know what she had expected as a response from him, but that wasn't it. "What made you think I would like _this_?" Plucking at her skirts she looked down, and realized she was dressed differently now.

Instead of foofy, girly, wispy material, she was clothed in sleek black silk. This was an Aboveground dress, she realized. It was sleeveless, gathered slightly at the neckline which was straight cut, from shoulder to shoulder. In the back it dipped low, much lower than any dress she'd ever worn before. It was barely short of indecent, exposing her entire back. The long dress flowed to her ankles, but was split in the front, baring one long thigh.

Reaching up, she realized her hair was also different. It was twisted up in a simple french twist, some strands escaping to brush at her neck and face. Even though she was much more exposed, she finally felt comfortable.

"Oh, _thank you_," she said, sighing with relief. "I don't know what possessed you with that thing, but I felt like I was playing dress-up in it."

"Indeed." He had a peculiar look on his face, bewildered and sad at the same time; catching her eyes he searched them so deeply her breath caught in her throat. He moved forward quickly, looking away from her entirely—she was left standing for a few moments, then hurried to catch up with him.

They walked in silence for several minutes, until coming to a large pair of doors Sarah had never seen before.

"Where are we?"

"You'll see."

Shrugging off the annoyance his non-informative answers caused, Sarah stepped through the doors. She was suddenly assaulted by warm, perfumed air and she reeled with confusion as her senses swam. She no longer felt like she was in the castle. This crazy, opulent room was amazing; the shimmering walls came up in rounded curves, chandeliers filled the ceiling, all at different heights to leave room for the others. Small pits filled with cushions were scattered throughout the room.

And the people. The room was filled with men and women, all wearing grotesque masks. They reminded Sarah of noblemen and women holding some kind of party in mockery of the goblins. Shrieking laughter filled the room, and Sarah turned uncertainly to look at Jareth. He was gone.

The moment Sarah entered the room, Jareth slipped away. It disconcerted him that she was so unhappy with the dress, he hoped that this wouldn't upset her further. He intended to watch her from afar for a few minutes, gauge her reaction, before coming to her. He wondered whether he should still change into the shining blue coat he had worn the first time Sarah had entered this place.

While this was not the exact place Sarah had entered before, on her first trip through the labyrinth, it _was_ an exact replica. That first room had existed only in Sarah's dream, her mind using the bubble to create the setting for the ball. He had wanted to remind her on some unconscious level that she had once felt something for him. Perhaps he was being too subtle.

Flicking his wrist he conjured a crystal which he dropped at his feet. It shattered, and he was suddenly dressed as he had been that night. His hair, wild with blue streaks, competed for attention with the glimmering jacket he now wore. He held a skeletal mask in one hand as he scanned the crowd for Sarah. He spotted her right off, her simple, sleek dress was in stark contrast with the rich, heavy clothes the dancers wore. She slowly walked through the crowd, looking all around her.

He moved smoothly in front of her, seeming to appear from nowhere. He took one of her hands in his, sliding the other behind to her back. She shuddered at the feel of his leather glove against her skin, her eyes fluttering closed. He smoothly spun her into a dance, matching the music perfectly. She looked up into his eyes, wonder painted on her face, as he moved her across the dance floor. A tune, familiar to him at least, rang out in the air. This time he did not supply it with words. He didn't want to frighten the girl. As the tune ended he ended the dance neatly at a small table off to the side. As Sarah sat she realized they were now alone. The ballroom looked somehow more threatening and bizarre with no people in it. She suppressed the urge to run and looked down at her plate.

Again, the meal was one of her favorites. An elaborate dinner setting, formal dancing, and now her favorite meal. What was Jareth getting at? She finally asked a question that had been burning at her all day.

"Jareth, can I ask you something?"

He looked at her. "Hmm?"

"How did you know that I needed help today. I don't mean to be ungrateful; you probably saved my life. But how did you know when I needed help?"

"I simply saw you."

"What do you mean?" Her nose crinkled adorably as she tried to work out what he said.

He grinned at her facial expression. "I mean, I was working and I conjured a crystal to see how you were doing, I saw you were in trouble and I went to you. Nothing more."

He conjured a crystal. He was watching her. He was _watching_ her!

"So...you mean that you..." she struggled to control herself. "You were spying on me?" Sarah was amazed at how calm that had sounded.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly call it—"

"What _would_ you call it?" Sarah's voice had started to raise, and Jareth went still, his face a mask.

"I would call it—"

"I _knew_ it! This is how you know all these things about me! You've been spying on me!" A buzzing started in her mind, drowning out her ability to think. All she could focus on was her anger. "You've been spying on me all along, haven't you? I HATE you!"

She turned to run, she had to leave, she had to get away from this castle. A burning pain had settled in her chest. She was being used by this man, and she had no intention of sticking around and getting hurt any further.

As her words struck him, Jareth's mask crumbled. The woman that he loved had just told him that she hated him. He remembered their conversation from the night before. It felt like a thousand years ago, when it was only less than thirteen hours. Without thinking he rose to follow her.

Sarah felt something grab her arm, but in her blind haste she continued on anyway. Jareth kept her arm in a vise grip, and Sarah was forced to turn. She took a breath to yell at him some more but he had other plans. Grabbing her by the upper arms he pulled her against him. One arm snaked around her lower back, holding her tightly against his chest while the other slid into her hair, causing it to tumble out of its twist and around her shoulders.. She struggled against him, but it was no use.

"I can see that you are as ungrateful as I ever thought you were. You have no idea what I have gone though, what even you yourself has gone through. You have no idea." With that he jerked the hand in her hair, forcing her head back and kissed her roughly.

Sarah struggled wildly, trying to free herself. Her heart was pounding so loud she thought it might burst. Her breath was coming in short, quick gasps. The feel of the Goblin King's lips on hers was the most painful, vile thing...

So caught up was Sarah in her struggle she failed to notice when Jareth's kiss became less rough and more sensual. His lips had softened on hers and he traced her lower lip with his tongue, sending traitorous shivers through her. Her emotions had been so topsy turvy in the last twenty minutes Sarah couldn't keep up. First anger at the dress, then some unknown feeling during their dance. Was it anticipation? Fury at the thought of him spying in her and now...now what was she feeling?

A tingling filled Sarah's body, concentrated wherever Jareth's hands lay. Her fingers and toes felt dumb and dull, unable to grasp anything because of the electric tingling. She wasn't sure what she was feeling, but she knew she didn't want it to stop. After several minutes of kisses Jareth slowed, and pulled back from her. He released her hair, but kept one hand on her back.

"Sarah," he whispered. She had never heard such a mournful tone from him. "If you only knew."

The pained look in his mismatched eyes broke her heart. He really was the most beautiful creature. He was so strong, yet somehow weakened at the same time. She realized she was the cause of that weakness; that thought decided her.

"Explain it to me."

"I can't, I—"

"Then don't explain it to me." She leaned up, slowly, and softly kissed him on the cheek, at the corner of his mouth. Her arms came up around his neck and she ran one hand through the wild hair at the top of his head. He looked intently into her eyes for one moment, then with a shower of glitter they were gone.

* * *

When they reappeared, Sarah recognized the room they were in as one she had only seen today for the first time. They were in Jareth's bedchamber. A thrill of fear and anticipation ran through her as he released her from his arms.

"Jareth?"

"Shhh." He ran one gloved finger down the side of her face. Brushing her lips with his thumb, he leaned down and gently kissed her lips.

"Jareth, what is all this?"

He looked into her eyes for a long minute. She thought he wasn't going to answer him, and took a breath to ask again when he interrupted her.

"I love you Sarah. I always have. I've loved you since you were a child. That is why I brought you here, that is how I saved you today. I love you."

Her breath caught in her throat. Was this possible? How could he love her? Before she could respond he bent again and kissed her. This time she could feel how much he loved her.

/_But what no one knew was that the king of the goblins had fallen in love with the girl, and he had given her certain powers._/

Sarah felt something tickling her brain, dancing on the edges of her consciousness. Without thinking she deepened the kiss.

_/Just fear me, love me. Do as I say and I will be your slave./_

She opened her mouth under his, and gasped at the feel of his slick tongue. It slid sinuously along hers, probing her sweetness. She moaned at the feeling. In all of her many past sexual encounters, she had never felt anything remotely close to how she felt now. There were butterflies in her stomach as his arm slipped behind her once more to caress her naked back. She arched in his arms pressing her chest to his.

The butterflies turned from a light fluttering to a burning heat which settled lower in her abdomen. She tore herself from Jareth and looked into his eyes. They were heavily lidded with desire.

"Sarah," he whispered hoarsely, resting his forehead against hers. "I need you. I want you."

"Yes," she whispered.

Slipping his other arms behind her knees, Jareth lifted her in one sweeping motion. Her arm went around his neck and she held herself against him on the few steps to his bed. She buried her face in his neck, breathing in his rich scent. He smelled so good, a melange of sweat and leather and something sweet, like honey. Gently settling her on the bed he moved until he was hovering over her on his hands and knees. He stopped moving, letting his eyes roam over her body, still clad in the clinging silk. Suddenly he reached down and flipped her over so she was lying on her stomach, turned away from him. She gasped, but nestled her arms under her, waiting to see what he would do. Removing his gloves, he trailed his fingers lightly over her bare back. He barely touched her, lightly tracing and caressing every naked inch. She shivered from the light touches. They tickled and left burning trails wherever they went. After only a few minutes of this curious touching Sarah was squirming on the bed wanting more. Jareth chuckled and she came back to herself. She had almost forgot that he was there, turned away as she was. She felt warm as she heard his laughter. He sounded happier than she had ever heard him before.

_/I am only happy when I am with you. I am only alive when I am with you. Can't you see that?/_

Turning her head towards him she felt a grin on her face as he caressed her. Reaching lower he suddenly tweaked her side and she yelped, sitting up abruptly. His smile widened.

"Got you."

With a smile and a cry she turned on to her back, fully intending to attack him; but he pinned her arms above her head, holding them with one hand.

"Ah, little Sarah. You'll have to work harder than that if you wish to get me."

With his free hand he traced a finger in a line over one of her breasts. She gasped and arched into his hand. Now he palmed her entire breast, lifting the heavy weight of it, stroking it lightly to the apex of her nipple, which he lightly teased before pinching it, twisting slightly. She arched again, this time lifting her entire back off the bed. She moaned deep in her throat, unable to control herself. Her breath began to come in short bursts and a throbbing between her legs was becoming unbearably sweet.

Suddenly he reached with both hands the neckline of the dress and gave a mighty tug. The delicate silk ripped in half, and before she realized what was happening he had torn it from her body. She lay, completely naked, underneath him; he wasted no time in feasting on her. Lowering his head to her breasts he began to suckle and lick them in earnest. Supporting them with his hands, he nuzzled them, now scraping his teeth across her nipples, now swirling his tongue around them. She was helpless in his arms, she could do nothing but gasp and moan and rub herself against him. Soon, too soon it was too much, but Sarah wanted more.

Pushing him off her, she reached to the buttons on his jacket. With a gleam in his eye he lay back and let her strip him of his clothing. He chuckled as she tried to figure out how to untie his breeches, then took pity on her when he heard her wordless whine of frustration. She was beyond all words, but finally he lay before her, as naked as she. Sarah took a moment to look at him: his long legs, his flat, smooth chest, his broad shoulders and finally the erection that jutted from his body. To that her eyes were drawn like a beacon.

Practically of their own volition her hands crept towards his shaft. It was long and smooth, and felt like silk covered stone when she held it in her hands. Tracing her fingers along the length she took the heat in her hand and slowly moved her hands along it. He moaned, pumping his hips slightly against her. Her eyes glazed over as she bent to lick him once, twice.

Before she could do anymore, he growled and flipped her to her back. He moved over her, and, sliding his throbbing member along her slick folds, luxuriated in her wet heat for several long moments. Finally Sarah couldn't take any more of it. She angled her hips in such a way that he slipped inside her. With a strangled cry Jareth thrust deeply inside her. Before long they were moving as one towards their release. Jareth had maneuvered them until he was sitting upright on his heels, while Sarah straddled his lap. He favored this position because it gave them both leverage, but still allowed him to see her. He played with her breasts, one arm supporting her back as he thrust into her.

While he had made love to her countless times, that had always been inside Sarah's dreams. Now she was here, in live flesh and blood. The sudden though that she would still be here in the morning inflamed him further, and he knew that he was close. Reaching between them he stroked her above their joining, sending her over the edge. She stiffened in his arms, and, with a keening wail fell backwards. Her muscles contracted all around him as she cried her release in panting moans which barely resembled his name. He thrust into her a few more times, a grimace of pleasured pain on his face, the muscles on his back and neck standing out as he found his release.

"Sarah!" he cried, once, before collapsing on top of her.

She let out a whoosh of air as Jareth landed on her chest. Giggling because of it, and with the after effects of her glorious orgasm, Sarah reached up to stroke his back. He shivered and nestled his face into her hair.

"Love you," he whispered before dropping straight into sleep.

Sarah lay awake for a long while, trying to figure out what it all meant before she too drifted off into sleep, Jareth's weight still pressing into her.

* * *

The next morning Jareth woke early. Something was tickling his nose, irritating him out of sleepfulness. He swatted his hand at his nose, jerking fully awake when he hit something substantial in front of him. A pair of naked shoulders peeked out from under the covers, someone was lying on their side with their back to him, nestled against him. Soft black hairs tickled his face. He remembered what happened the night before, and smiled to himself, burying his face in Sarah's neck.

"Good morning my darling."

"Mmm," Sarah turned, thwacking him on the face with her arm.

Chuckling and moving out of the way, he tried again.

"It's time to wake up, lovely."

Her eyes cracked and she squinted up at him. "Jareth?"

"Good morning."

She smiled shyly. "Morning."

He smiled down at her and kissed her softly on the forehead before getting up to relieve himself. While he was gone Sarah thought about what had happened the night before, what it meant to wake up next to him. She wondered if it would ever happen again, and was flooded with warmth at the thought. Did Jareth really love her, now that it was the light of day? Could she ever love him back?

She was shaken out of her reverie when Jareth slipped back into bed with her. She had to know the truth.

"Jareth...do you really love me?"

He looked at her seriously. "More than anything. I would do anything for you."

_/I'll paint you mornings of gold, I'll spin you Valentine evenings/_

It was true. She didn't know how it could be possible, but she knew it was true.

"Sarah, do you think...that is, is it possible that...could you ever love me?"

She thought about everything that had happened since she had come to this place. She thought about last night, the friends she had met, the choices she had made. She thought about Jareth. He was so beautiful, he looked so sad and hopeful at the same time as he waited her answer. Her heart skipped a beat at the expression in his face.

_/ Just give me some time, I'll think of something./_

_/Something _crafty_./_

Sarah gasped in wonder.

_/I have turned the world upside down and I have done it all for you. I am exhausted from living up to your expectations of me./_

A flood of memories washed over her. She stiffened at the flood of memories: traveling through the labyrinth, meeting Jareth in her dreams, falling in love with him; she remembered everything as it dropped into her brain.

_/Give me the child./_

_/Hoggle! You've come to rescue me!/_

_/No, I said 'ello! But tha's close enough./_

_/Ludo, call the rocks!/_

_/And you Sarah, how are you enjoying my labyrinth?/_

_/Yeah! You're only allowed to throw your own head!/_

_/Everything I've done I've done for you. I move the stars for no one./_

_/I couldn't live knowing that I loved you while you had not the faintest idea of who or what I was./_

Sighing, she looked over to the man lying next to her. She gave him a soft smile. "Jareth," she breathed.

"Do you understand?"

She thought about her life since she had come back to the labyrinth. The huge gulf between night and day. While it was little more than confusing for her, it must have been devastating for him. For her to love him so fully during their passion filled nights, and ignore him during those ascetic days. Torture. Her heart swelled with love and pity that he had been forced through such an ordeal. And irritation that it took him so long to do anything about it. She smiled again. Eternity certainly would be interesting.

"Yes, I understand. Thank you."

Taking her once again in his arms he sighed with relief, gripping her tightly. Nothing, nobody would ever take this away from him again.

THE END


End file.
